NEW YORK—The odds are in favor of renewal for the Terrorism Risk Insurance Act, but do not expect expansion of the program says William R. Berkley, chairman and CEO of W.R. Berkley Crop.

"There is not great enthusiasm in Washington to renew TRIA," says Berkley, yesterday during the Standard & Poor's Rating Service Insurance Conference here. "But this improving housing industry and construction industry will put additional pressure on TRIA [renewal]. I'm optimistic as of today that at best there is a 60/40 chance that it will be extended."

He says he see no appetite for expansion of the program despite the fact that everyone admits terrorism coverage is needed, but like the debate over taxes and the deficit, it is caught-up in an ideological debate over the role of government in the private sector.

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